A tanker carrying Russian oil products suffered four external explosions off the coast of Senegal, Bloomberg reported Monday, citing the vessel’s manager Besiktas Shipping.
The incident near the Senegalese capital Dakar marks the third case in recent days involving tankers that transport Russian fuel in defiance of Western sanctions.
Besiktas Shipping said water started flooding the engine room of the Mersin after the blasts, which took place at 23:45 UTC on Nov. 27.
The ship remained stable and its crew members were safe, the company said. It added that no environmental pollution had been detected.
The Mersin was carrying gasoil and had made several calls at Russian ports this year, Bloomberg said, citing analytics firm Kpler.
The vessel was stabilized after taking on significant water and has been placed under tow and technical supervision, Bloomberg cited Senegal’s port authority as saying.
Bloomberg's report follows explosions on Russian shadow-fleet tankers Kairo and Virat in the Black Sea over the weekend.
A source in Ukraine’s SBU security service later told CNN that the ships were struck by upgraded Sea Baby naval drones in a joint SBU and naval operation. Both ships had been sailing empty and were taken out of service following the explosions.
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